


in the pines

by anathebookworm



Category: The Walking Dead (Telltale Video Game)
Genre: Alternate Universe - Everyone Lives/Nobody Dies, Everyone is here basically - Freeform, F/F, F/M, I wanted to include Lilly, also I love to mess with louis, and alive so yay, but nah, but nothing too serious I promise, everyone is aged up, fuck you Lilly, louisentine is sweet, minnie is actually here, minnie lives, poor boi, she and violet still love each other yay, so she isn't here, some jokes and references to everyone having a sexual life
Language: English
Status: Completed
Published: 2018-10-06
Updated: 2018-10-13
Packaged: 2019-07-27 05:25:38
Rating: Teen And Up Audiences
Warnings: No Archive Warnings Apply
Chapters: 2
Words: 8,736
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/16212335
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/anathebookworm/pseuds/anathebookworm
Summary: For several years, things are okay. No raiders, no major threats. Until things suddenly aren't easy anymore.(Mostly Louisentine/Clouis, but includes other pairings)





	1. Chapter 1

**Author's Note:**

> Be prepared for a messy timeline, because that’s my favorite thing to do when I write fics! So, Marlon didn’t hurt Brody, but she still told everyone about his deal with the raiders. They took a vote, and it was decided they could stay in the school. Therefore, no one kicked Clementine and AJ from the school, she didn’t meet with Lilly or James or anyone. And Lilly and the raiders from Delta didn’t show up for some reason. However, she still started a relationship with Louis and formed a close friendship with Violet. And then five years passed (most kids are in their early 20s and AJ is 11) and everyone is okay-ish (it’s still the apocalypse.)
> 
> So yeah, this happened. It got surprisingly longer than it was supposed to be, too. Also, yes, I’m one of those people who would feel really uncomfortable reading anything smutty that is about Clementine, but off screen is okay. And honestly, there are just comments here and there relating to this. Annnnd they’re aged up so everyone is legally an adult, so there’s that too. But if this makes you uncomfortable, better not to read this.
> 
> Oh, and if you enjoy my work, you can always say hello on Twitter! I’m @anathebookworm and I’d love to chat!

She knows how necessary these trips outside their safe zone are. Of course she does, they wouldn’t be able to have everything they needed inside the school forever. She understands the reason behind the trips—in fact, Violet often asks for her suggestions when it comes to planning them.

Still, everyone in this school has become part of her family, and she hates when she is left behind. When they tell her she needs to rest for a bit or else she wouldn’t be able to keep going. Bullshit, she told them more than once.

She hates not knowing if her family will come back in one piece. She hates not being there, protecting them when they need her. She hates all of this.

Vi herself sits next to Clementine, her eyes glued to the woods in front of them. Aside from a walker here and there, it looks safe enough.

“They’re going be okay,” Violet says, whispers, though her head doesn’t move and she doesn’t look at Clementine. “They always come back.”

“I know,” she says, her frown never leavening her face. “But something isn’t right. I can feel there’s something happening.”

Violet finally turns to look at her, one of her hands touching Clementine’s gently. “You worry too much. I understand where you’re coming from—and I know I’m guilty of being too worried all the time, too—but, Clem, we’re fine.” She bites her lower lip. “Unless you already know something that I don’t?”

Clementine scoffs, but there’s no bite in it. “Never thought I’d hear you accusing me of something.”

“Oh, come on,” Violet says with a laugh. “I noticed that you asked Ruby something in private this time. Since you didn’t ask AJ like you always do, you can’t blame me for being curious.”

“That’s so nosy.” Clementine laughs, shaking her head. “It’s nothing like that. Or, well, it’s not what you’re thinking it is. AJ doesn’t need to know everything I do, you know.”

“He doesn’t need to, but he usually finds a way to figure everything out,” Violet points out. “And this is only making me think you don’t want to admit it’s exactly what I’m thinking it is.”

It’s funny, Clementine thinks, how Violet can make her laugh and stop worrying for a moment. They’re truly a family, and a close-knit one at that. The last few years...have been a blessing.

“Alright, you win,” Clementine says. “It’s...stop looking at me like that! It’s _not_ a fucking test, God. You’re making me feel awkward.”

“Not my fault,” Violet says. “Everyone’s kind of waiting for when something like that happens. You know, since there are couples around now.”

“And does it have to be me? It could also be, I don’t know, Ruby?”

“You already have experience with AJ, so...”

“Exactly,” she says. “That’s exactly why we’re avoiding something like what you’re thinking. This world isn’t made for children...” Clementine sighs. “I don’t like this conversation. Are you sure there’s nothing else we can talk about?”

Violet raises her hands. “Do you think it’d make you feel better to go do something else instead of watch? I could take over for you.”

The school is more active then it usually is, Clementine knows. When people go out hunting or scavenging, those who stay behind will do everything they can to keep themselves busy. Today is no different. From a distance, she can see Mitch and Brody talking, smiling, while fixing something on the walls. It’s been like this ever since they started dating a few years ago—they always do things together. And Brody seems happier, which makes Clementine feels relieved. Brody definitely earned the right to be happy after all the shit that happened. The vote they had all these years ago...deciding if Brody and Marlon could stay...that’s not something Clementine likes to remember. These were stressful days for everyone.

“Clem?” Violet insists, making Clementine’s mind snap back to the present.

“Sorry,” she says. “I was just...spacing out, I guess.”

“All the more reason to rest for a minute. I swear I’ll call you the second they come back.”

“Fine,” she says, walking away from Violet before turning around to offer a smile. “Thanks.”

Violet makes good on her promise and Clementine is shaken awake from a slumber when the sky is starting to darken. Her eyes find Violet’s, a question she can’t voice.

“They’re okay,” her friend says, and Clementine does her best to hide her relieved sigh. “But you were right about something fishy going on. Apparently someone’s stealing from our traps.”

Clementine rubs her eyes before following Violet to the courtyard. “Someone’s been stealing from us since Marlon called the deal with the raiders off.”

“Yeah, but it’s more serious now. Like, they’re not leaving anything at all to us.”

When they make it to where the others are, Clementine doesn’t even think before AJ finds his way to her arms. He’s getting taller and taller, his head already reaching her chin. She closes her eyes to let her body acknowledge the fact that her boy is back, that he’s okay and he’s back to her.

“Hey, Clem,” he greets, scurrying away from her after a moment. Growing up indeed.

Next comes Ruby, who hugs her just as tightly before pressing something in her hands.

“What you asked,” Ruby explains, a kind smile on her face. “If you want to talk, we can do it later. Alright?”

“Yeah,” she says. “Thanks, Ruby.” She hides the bag of pills inside her jacket before anyone can notice she’s even taken it.

And then finally, finally Louis comes to her, grinning like the idiot he is, chair leg swung over his shoulder.

“Hey, darlin’” he says with that playful tone and crooked smile. She kisses him before checking for injuries, the bad feeling she’s had all day dissipating while she allows herself to enjoy the moment.

But then, when she moves to grab his arm and steady herself, he groans. Clementine breaks the kiss immediately to check and that’s when she sees the blood running down his left forearm, staining his jacket.

“What the fuck?” She asks, not really bothering not to sound angry. “What happened?”

“Nothing that can’t be fixed,” he says at the same time AJ blurts, “we saw who was stealing from us.”

She turns to her kid with wide eyes. “You did?”

“No, not really,” Louis says before AJ can. “We saw someone. Something. On our way back from the town. They or it or whatever was messing with the traps and we went to investigate—”

“You went on your own,” AJ says.

“Not fair, little dude. You can’t keep ratting me out like that.”

“I’m not little anymore.”

“Nope, to me you still are.”

Clementine interrupts their bicker with a new, “What the fuck, Louis?”

“It was nothing,” he insists. “They were startled when they saw me. Shot me in the arm. But Ruby already helped with the stuff we got from the city, so it’s all good.”

Ruby shrugs when all eyes move to her. “He’ll live,” she says.

“Unfortunately for us,” Aasim says with a snicker that is rebuffed by a “hey, dude, I’ll let you know that I’m the spirit of this community and you’d all die of boredom without me around!”

Brody seems uneasy with this new information, Clementine notices, and it doesn’t take long for the girl to ask what everyone is thinking. “Was it...that man? With different eyes?”

Knowing how much he hates them after they made him lose an arm, Clementine doubts it’s him. If it were, he wouldn’t have aimed to scare them off. No, she’s pretty sure he wouldn’t waste the chance to kill one of them. It makes an involuntary shudder to run through her body, knowing how close they could be of losing each other.

“No, definitely not,” AJ provides. “Whoever they were, they had both arms. And...they seemed little, right, Louis?”

Louis seems a bit surprised that AJ isn’t interested in bickering anymore, but he nods. “Yeah, they were. Could’ve been a girl, I don’t know.”

“Makes sense,” Violet pipes in. “A girl would be faster and stealthier to steal from the traps. You probably weren’t even supposed to see her.”

“Did she follow you?” Brody insists, her old insecurities shining in her worried features. They don’t soften when Mitch grabs one of her hands between his, but her fingers squeeze his back.

“Nah, I don’t think so,” Louis says. “She ran away. If it’s a she anyway.”

“It doesn’t make sense,” Marlon says at last, wincing when everyone turns to look at him. He still doesn’t seem to have recovered from the months after Brody told the group about his betrayal. “Why wouldn’t they just attack us? They always said they wanted new recruits, so it doesn’t make sense to try and slowly starve us to death.”

Violet glares at him—like she always does when he speaks. “It could be a game. Playing with our fears, trying to see if we’d abandon the school or something.”

“Whatever the reason, I bet they’ll let us know soon,” Louis pipes in with a smile. “Meanwhile, what do you guys say about a game?”

Most of the group doesn’t want to participate, too worried about the possibilities. Brody and Mitch walk away together, his arms shielding her from anything the world could throw at her. It’s sweet, Clementine thinks. Ruby and Aasim also move away, and so do Willy and Omar. This leaves Clementine with her boys, Violet, Tenn and Marlon.

They all end up sitting on the ground together, not really excited about a game like they usually are.

Louis clears his throat after putting his cards in the middle of them. “So, uh, highest card gets to ask lowest card anything.”

It ends with AJ getting to ask Marlon something. He thinks hard about it and then blurts, “There are a lot of couples here, why don’t you have a girlfriend?”

It earns a snicker from both Violet and Louis, a blush from Marlon, and a small smile from Clementine at the boy’s antics.

“Well, I, well...” Marlon scratches the back of his neck. “All the girls are taken, you know that.”

“Yeah, but we meet other people who are friendly all the time,” AJ insists.

Violet decides to make it a bit funnier and pretends to whisper to AJ, “It’s his hair, duh. I doubt any girl wants to get close that...dead thing.”

“Hey!” Marlon protests. “My hair’s cool.”

“I feel like we already discussed this a thousand times,” Louis says with a smile. “Moving on, then?”

Next round, Violet gets the chance to ask AJ something. With the way her face softens considerably, Clem knows she’ll take it easy. She does have a soft spot for the boy, after all.

“Umm, let’s see, let’s see,” she says with a wink, her playful side showing. “Grossest thing you’ve ever witnessed?”

Clementine is sure AJ will have to think about this one, because all the things they’ve witnessed together...she herself probably wouldn’t know what to choose.

But AJ doesn’t think even for three seconds before his mouth is open, “Well, there was that time I was looking for my stuff inside Clem’s bag and I found...” he wrinkles his nose in disgust, the next word coming as a whisper, “condoms.”

Violet laughs so loudly it’s obnoxious. Marlon has the decency to look a bit awkward, though he still laughs, trying to mask it with coughs.

Clementine is pretty sure her look is a mirror of Louis’, eyes wide in betrayal at AJ.

“I can’t believe you’d out us like that!” He says, his face reddening more and more with each passing second. “I thought you loved us!”

“I do,” AJ says with a shrug. “But that was still gross. You said we can’t lie in this game.”

“Come on,” Violet says, a huge grin on her face. “It’s not like it’s a secret you two are fu—”

“Vi!” Tenn, bless the boy, interrupts her.

“Fine,” she grumbles. “But it’s still true. Everyone knows it.”

It takes them all a moment until Louis finds his voice again and says, with more strength than necessary, “Moving on! Because, you know, this isn’t something that should be discussed in front of everyone.”

This time, Marlon ends with the right to ask Clementine something. She glares at him as soon as they have the result, and she’s satisfied to see his gulp.

“So...” he shakes his head, clearly trying to find a question that isn’t going to anger her. “If you and Louis weren’t together, who would you date here?”

She relaxes a bit. “From us here or the whole school?”

Marlon shrugs. “The school, I guess.”

Louis seems interested in her answer, a smile already on his lips. Ready to poke fun at her for sure. She smiles, letting the embarrassment from AJ’s outing fade for a moment.

“Probably Brody,” she says after a moment. “Or Aasim.”

Louis laughs, but pokes her in the arm. “That’s cheating!”

“Well, Marlon said if we weren’t together.”

“Still cheating, both Aasim and Brody are taken,” he says, still laughing.

She shakes her head.

Before they can move on, Vi adds, “Told you, Marlon, no girl wants to get anywhere close to your hair.”

This makes them all—except Marlon—laugh.

“To be fair,” Clementine says, a sly smile on her lips, “he could be my third option.”

Louis’ eyes widen, and she snickers at him. “What? No joke now?”

“That’s much worse than cheating!” He exclaims, mocking a wounded look. “He’s my best friend! You can’t do that!”

She laughs earthly, leaning against Louis’ shoulder and wrapping her arms around his frame, careful not to touch the bullet wound.

“I still love you the most,” she whispers in his ear, making all protests die down and a cute blush to spread all over his face. Even after all these years, he’s still shy when she flirts with him.

“See?” AJ interrupts the moment. “That’s gross, too. Can I sleep in your room tonight, Tenn?”

“Sure,” Tenn says. The two boys get up and simply move away, talking between themselves while they make it back inside the school building.

“Better to wrap up the game for now,” Louis says, clearing his throat once again.

“Oh yes, I’m sure you two are excited to be alone for a while,” Violet says, teasing still written all over her face.

Clementine rolls her eyes. “Vi, come on. Drop it.”

Violet shrugs, and after waving a good night, she moves away as well.

“Guess that’s my cue to leave,” Marlon says, not wasting any time to run away. He always seems incredibly uncomfortable near her and Louis when it’s just the three of them.

Clementine and Louis make it to the couch they keep outside, still holding hands and smiling.

“Alone at last?” He says, asks, a pretty blush still coloring his cheeks.

“Yeah,” she says. Then her smile disappears. “Are you sure your arm is okay?”

“It’s fine,” he says, brushing a stray lock away from her face. “But you can always kiss it better, you know.”

“Weirdo.”

“Back at you, Clemster.”

“God, don’t call me that,” she pleads, hiding her smile from his eyes.

They stay in a comfortable silence for a while, keeping each other warm and safe from the approaching cold.

“Hey” he says after a moment, almost afraid, “I was wondering...what are these pills you asked Ruby to get for you?” Her head snaps up in a second, and he reads her question before she even opens her mouth. “Aw, you know I notice things. Especially when it’s about you.”

She nods. “It’s nothing, really,” Clementine says. “Just...a plan b. In case we need it.”

He frowns. “Need it for what?”

“You know.” She gestures between them. “To keep it safe. To keep AJ the only kid we have to worry about.”

“Like...pills that are for—”

“Yeah,” she interrupts him. “Please don’t look at me like that. I just think it’s better. It’s not that I don’t...I just...this isn’t a good world.”

It takes him a moment, but he finally nods. “I get it, don’t worry. But are you...?”

“No.”

Flashes from Jane hanging from the ceiling, growling after discovering she was pregnant, still haunt Clementine. She doesn’t think she’ll ever be able to forget that scene.

“...okay.” Another long pause until he finds the courage to speak again. “I just wish...well, I hope you won’t shut me out. If you need anything. Like, anything at all. I’m here for you. We’ll always support each other, right?”

She smiles, melting at his care. Her hand finds his cheek and she caresses it, closing her eyes when he closes his own.

“We’ll always have each other’s backs,” she says, a promise in her lips. “No matter the situation.”

“I’m glad,” he says. Takes a deep breath. “So...how about going to sleep now? I have watch in the morning.”

When they make it to her bedroom, AJ indeed is nowhere to be seen. They take it as a chance to share a bed, keep each other safe, without the boy whining about “how gross they are.”

* * *

 

She doesn’t sleep for more than a few hours.

She dreams about the supposed girl that was stealing from them, she dreams about her shooting at Louis and AJ and Clementine can’t stay in bed any longer. If there’s someone outside...someone dangerous...someone that’s so close and that could potentially hurt her family... she can’t take the chance.

Her mindset, Clementine rolls from the bed, careful not to disturb Louis, and grabs a warm coat. His coat is the first thing her hands find in the dark, and it feels right to take it with her. This way, she won’t be going this way, he’ll be there with her.

She’s as careful and quiet as she can, moving around the school. Still, the years of safety must’ve have softened her, because it doesn’t take long until she hears, “So, where are you going so late?”

It’s Violet.

Clementine sighs. “You’re on watch duty again?”

“Nope,” Violet says. “But I might as well be, since you’d have sneaked off if it weren’t for me. So. Going anywhere exciting?”

She could lie. It would be easy. But it’d also be wrong—this is Violet, her best friend, the person she trusts with anything.

“I can’t stop thinking about that person messing with the traps,” she says in a whisper. “What if she’s still around? I...need to know. I won’t rest if I’m not sure, Vi. She _shot_ Lou. How can I sleep knowing that next time she sees one of us, it won’t be a warning shot?”

“Whoa, no need to convince me, Clem,” Violet says, eyes kind. “I agree with you. I want to find her, too.”

“But?”

“But nothing. I say let’s do it, let’s show them that we’re tired of this shit. It’s our food, they can’t go around stealing it. And they certainly can’t shoot out people!”

Clementine smiles, gratitude flowing through her. Violet is, indeed, the best friend she has.

It’s almost too easy to slip from the school, to avoid Mitch’s watchful eyes while he does his patrol. And once they’re in the woods, it indeed feels too easy. No walkers, no raiders, no animals wandering aimlessly. Something about this whole situation isn’t right, and Clementine can feel how it’s making her nervousness skyrocket.

And then she sees it. Clementine sees her, the girl AJ talked about. She’s small and fast, moving between the trees.

“Don’t move!” She calls to the girl, raising her bow at the same time Violet raises hers, too. The girl takes a step closer to them. “Don’t you dare try it again, or I swear I’ll shoot. What do you want? Why are you here?”

It happens so fast after that. She barely registers when the girl raises one of her arms as well, the darkness working against Clementine. And then pain. So much pain, spreading over her stomach and her chest and she’s been shot before, but it’ll never be a pleasant experience.

She knows walkers nearby will all be attracted to them now, to the gunshot. And yet, she doesn’t care, because all she can think about is how her blood is slipping from her body, dripping on the ground, staining Lou’s coat.

She’s on her knees, clutching her middle, when the girl starts approaching again. Violet moves quickly, promptly puts herself between Clementine and the stranger.

“Don’t,” Violet warns. “I’ll put an arrow in your brain if you closer to her.”

And then something extraordinary happens—the girl puts her gun away.

“Vi?” She asks, slowly, afraid. “Violet?”

Violet herself drops her bow, though she doesn’t move. Her voice is small when she asks, “Minnie?”

Clementine doesn’t hear anything after that, too much pain clouding her system. She sees the girl—Minnie?—approaching, red hair kept short, green military jacket keeping her warm. And then she sees nothing.

She recovers consciousness from time to time, enough to feel she’s being taken back to the school, enough to feel Violet supporting her.

Enough to hear Violet yelling for help, enough to see Mitch running to them.

Enough to see Ruby trying to help her, telling her to stay still while she removes the bullet. Enough to hear Marlon’s shouts, AJ’s shouts.

Enough to feel Louis holding her hand tightly, whispering “I love you, please don’t go” over and over. She opens her mouth to try and tell him she won’t go anywhere, she loves him too, but no sound ever comes out.

And then it’s morning. She’s laying somewhere inside the headmaster’s office, Louis sitting next to her, his eyes lost and unfocused and red.

“I can’t do this without you,” he’s saying, but he’s not looking at her. Doesn’t realize she’s waking up. “I can’t, Clem. If you leave...AJ and I, we...we can’t do this without you. I love you so much. I...I can’t. Please don’t go somewhere I can’t follow. Because I’ll try to follow you either way. You know I will.”

She forces her lips open, they feel caked with blood, but she can’t let him say things like that. “Hope you didn’t mean that,” she croaks out.

He jumps, eyes so scared and filled with hope and love. And then he’s there, kneeling next to her, taking her face between his hands and kissing her everywhere he can.

“You’re okay,” he says. Repeats. “You’re okay. Thank God you’re okay. I thought...”

“Not yet,” she tells him, throat aching. “It’s not this easy to get rid of me.”

“Clem...”

“You didn’t mean what you said, did you?” She insists. “You can’t. That’s...I don’t want you doing something stupid because of me. AJ needs you.”

“He needs _you_ ,” he says, voice raspy and eyes welling up with tears again. “ _I_ need you.”

“I’ll never leave you,” she promises. “Both of you.”

He nods, and she lets him cry, let’s him hug her and cry all he wants. She can’t control her own tears, too many emotions fighting inside her chest. Finally, she asks, “What happened?”

This makes him scowl for a moment. “Yeah, you know what, I should be asking that. One minute we’re sleeping, and the next you’re gone and Brody is shaking me to say you’re dying.”

Clementine winces. “She said that?”

“She didn’t need to. You looked dead already. God, Clem, you looked dead. Ruby insisted that you weren’t, but I...your lips were blue. Fucking blue. I’ve never been scared like this in my life.”

She squeezes his hand. “Vi. What about Vi? She was there, she was with me.”

His face hardens so fast, he barely looks like the man she loves for a second. “Fucking Violet is trying to convince people to vote in favor of her girlfriend.”

“What?” Clementine tries to remember more, but there’s nothing. “What do you mean?”

“I mean that Minerva, the girl I thought I knew my whole life, showed up and almost killed you. And Violet thought it was a good idea to bring her here, pledge for her or whatever. After she almost killed you. Apparently Minnie is telling a story about how she escaped the raiders but decided to shoot all of us on sight because she thought Marlon’s deal with them was still a thing.”

It takes Clementine a moment to process everything, and when she does, she grabs his other hand with her bloodied one. “It could be the truth. I mean, it makes sense.”

“I don’t care, Clementine. She shot you. She almost took you from us. Do you have any idea what that means? It means she’d destroy all of us. We all...we love you. We need you.”

“Lou...”

“No. Fuck her. I’m not changing my mind. This...I won’t accept this. My family lives here. I don’t want them around someone dangerous. And if you want me to be selfish, then think about it this way—she shot me, too.”

“Do I get to vote?”

“What?” He looks taken aback by her question. But then he nods. “Of course. Of course you do. You and AJ both.”

She nods.

He frowns. “You’re not thinking about voting for her to stay, are you?”

“Maybe we shouldn’t have this conversation right now.”

“Clem, no. No.”

“I need to listen to her at some point. And then I’ll decide. Sounds fair?”

He looks like he wants to protest, but it all dies down when she brings his hand to her face, kisses his wrist. “I love you,” she tells him.

“Me too, Clem. Me, too.” Louis sighs. “Can you promise not to do something this reckless again?”

“I’ll try,” she says, smiling a little. “Now, do you think you could lay down with me for a moment? I really need you.”

He does—and together, she feels a bit safer.


	2. Chapter 2

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Hiiiii! So, this is basically what was already part of the other chapter, only I developed it more. Idk, it also felt better to make it a different chapter.

It’s a tie.

Louis votes that Minnie should leave, of course. AJ does, too. And then Mitch, Aasim and Omar. And, finally, after weighing down the situation, Marlon votes no, too. He’s too loyal to Louis and Clementine knows this is for her, too. She knows he likes her.

And then there’s Violet and Tenn, both who obviously vote for Minnie to stay. Brody, too, because of her guilt. Ruby because she feels Minnie needs medical attention and they’d be damned if Ruby didn’t try to save anyone she could. Willy votes for Minnie, too.

And when they all look at her, when she looks in the eye of the girl that shot her, Clementine thinks about Arvo. How he divided her group when they couldn’t decide what to do with him. And then she sees Violet, her best friend, squeezing Minnie’s fingers.

She doesn’t know what to think about Minnie, not really. She’s a beautiful redhead with her hair cropped short, freckles all over her face. She doesn’t smile, doesn’t speak, doesn’t pledge for herself. Doesn’t blame Marlon and yells.

But her eyes are only sadness when she looks at Violet’s hand, and it tugs at Clementine’s heart too much.

She votes for Minnie to stay, and they all yell at each other because of the tie.

Violet’s eyes are grateful, the smile she offers Clem showing nothing but her love.

On the other hand, most of the boys look at her like she just lost her mind completely. Honestly, maybe that wasn’t the best decision—maybe it’d be easier to kick the girl out if she was a stranger. But knowing how much Minnie means to many people in the school, Clementine can’t vote against her. She can’t.

“This is bullshit,” Mitch says, growls under his breath the same way he always does when he doesn’t approve of their decisions. “You guys can’t seriously believe she should stay.”

“Fuck you, Mitch,” Violet says, hands curling into fists. “Don’t act like she’s a stranger that you don’t care about.”

“She is a stranger,” he insists. “It’s been like, six years since we last saw her. She was stealing from us. She shot Louis and Clementine. What the fuck, Violet? How can you excuse that? She might as well have become a raider!”

Vi’s hand fly to her knife, but Minnie stills it. Shakes her head that no, this isn’t a good idea.

“Well, and whose fault is that anyway?” Violet finally says. “If it weren’t for Marlon, none of this would’ve happened. Fuck, if it weren’t for him, Sophie would still be alive!”

“I’m sorry,” Minnie finally says, not really looking at anyone. “I...I’ll leave, if you guys think it’s best. I’m sorry for everything I did.”

“No, you won’t leave,” Violet says with a snarl. “The vote was a tie, which means we didn’t decide shit. So you’re staying.”

“Sounds to me like you’re abusing your power,” Mitch continues, until Brody touches his arm and shakes her head.

“Fuck you,” Violet repeats.

“I can’t listen to this,” Louis suddenly says, shaking his head and moving away. AJ follows him immediately, takes his hand and whispers something.

Clementine wants to follow them, but they need to settle this first. Her body is still achy, she’s still dizzy from all the blood she lost, but she won’t rest until they reach an agreement.

“What if...” Brody starts tentatively. “What if we allow Minnie to stay for a few days? At least until we all agree on something.”

“And give her time to hurt one of us again?” Mitch looks her incredulously, but there’s no anger in his voice anymore.

“If she does something, then she’ll have to leave,” Clementine proposes. “Sounds fair?”

Mitch huffs. “So we’re all going to have to watch our backs for a while, afraid if she’ll decide to shoot us? Fine.” He groans in annoyance and stalks away. Brody follows him, but not before smiling at Violet’s whispers of “thank you.”

Minnie doesn’t turn back before she walks away, too. Doesn’t thank anyone. It makes Clementine frown, but she doesn’t think she’d react well that all this stress either. With a sigh, she moves back inside the building, a beeline her and AJ’s room. Both her boy and Louis are there, sitting together on her bed, Louis’ arm draped around AJ.

She quietly makes it to their side, takes their hands with hers.

“We’ll be okay,” she whispers.

They don’t answer her, but the three of them still cuddle together, protecting each other from everything.

* * *

 

It takes Minnie two weeks to finally face her.

“Hey,” Minnie says quietly, approaching Clementine after dinner. “I...don’t think I ever apologized for what happened. Or thanked you for voting for me to stay.”

“You didn’t,” Clementine answers, not really getting what Minnie could possibly want from her now. “But it’s okay.”

“It’s really not. I...I was just afraid. I was alone. All the time, and I couldn’t...I couldn’t trust anyone. I would never have hurt you if I knew...” She sighs. “They’re right to blame me. To want me away.”

Clementine shakes her head, and something about her demeanor must’ve been open enough for Minnie to decide to sit by her side.

“They’re boys,” she tells with a small smile. “Might look like men, but most of them are still boys. I don’t think anyone here hates you. They forgave Marlon, after all.”

Minnie’s eyes harden. “That’s something I’m not sure I’ll ever be able to do.”

“I know, and I don’t expect you to,” she says. “No one is asking that.”

“So how can I ask them to forgive me?”

“Maybe...with time...they’ll let it go. But I don’t think it’d hurt if you decided to help around, especially if you know something about the raiders.”

Minnie smiles. “That’s a good idea. I’ll talk to them in the morning.” After a pause, she continues, “And, Clementine? Thank you...for being there for Vi when I couldn’t. I know you’ve been her friend, taken care of her. I appreciate it.”

“She did the same for me,” Clementine says with a smile. “They all took care of me and AJ when we needed it the most. Your brother has been so good to AJ, I...I don’t have words.”

“They’re good people,” Minnie says with a nod. “Better than most we’ll find these days.”

“Well, I hope we can become friends at one point,” Clementine says, getting up from the table. “Right now, though, I really need to sleep.”

Minnie doesn’t say anything else, but Clementine catches her smile while she walks away. She did good, she thinks, voting for Minnie to stay.

She barely makes it to the school building before she’s doubling over in pain, too similar to her cramps that will occasionally strike. It’s easier to deal with them now that she’s living in the school, now that Ruby is around. But Ruby isn’t here now, no one except for Minnie—if Minnie didn’t go somewhere already—is here. Her hands fly to her middle, desperate to keep the pain at bay.

For a desperate moment, Clementine feels a hand touching her arm and the first thought that comes to mind is that a walker made it inside and is ready to—

“Clementine?”

It’s Minnie.

It doesn’t make her racing heart slow down, it doesn’t make the pain go away.

“What is it?” Minnie asks, her hands moving everywhere, trying to find an unseen injury. “What’s wrong? What can I do?”

“N-Nothing,” Clementine says, voice shaky. “Just c-cramps. Don’t worry.”

Minnie’s entire face softens, and she gently guides Clementine back to where they ate dinner.

“Do you want to look for Ruby?” She asks after a moment.

“No. No, I’m feeling better already,” Clementine answers. Then she lowers her eyes. “We don’t have a lot of supplies, and I don’t want Ruby wasting them on me. Again.”

For a second, Minnie looks away—and Clementine can see the shame in her stare. She touches her hand to Minnie’s, intertwines their fingers.

“Hey,” she whispers, waits until Minnie is looking her in the eye. “It’s okay. I forgave you already.”

“You really shouldn’t,” Minnie says quietly. “And that’s not the time to talk about it anyway. Are you sure you’re feeling better? I used to have some nasty cramps...”

“And they stopped?” She raises one eyebrow in question.

Minnie shrugs. “Kind of. I think that because I was stressed all the time, my body stopped working right. It doesn’t matter, not really. I never intended to use my uterus anyway.”

They both laugh a little at that, and it’s enough to make Clementine forget for a moment about her pain and her stress. Her mirth dies when she remembers about the pills she’s been keeping, the ones she asked for Ruby to find. She never did end up talking to Ruby about the possibility of using them.

She must be obvious, because after looking at her again, Minnie stops laughing. “You know, if you ever need to talk about something, I’m a good listener,” she says. “And Vi often said that I give good advice.”

“It’s nothing,” Clementine says quickly, hastily. “Just a bad experience that keeps haunting me.” Minnie nods, and she decides to continue. “I had this friend once...I don’t know if we were friends, or if she was just my caretaker. It doesn’t matter. We had a good thing going on, a good life with both of us taking care of AJ. It was just a few months after he was born. I didn’t think...I found her one day, dead. Hanging from the fucking ceiling, already growing like one of them. And she had...this pregnancy test next to her.”

“God,” Minnie whispers, eyes wide. “I’m so sorry. That’s awful. And...don’t get me wrong, but it feels so selfish that she just opted out and left you and the boy.”

Clementine gulps, but she does nod. “I felt so betrayed. And I guess...I guess there’s this part of me that’s afraid I’ll be like that, you know? That if something like this happens, then I’ll just...opt out.”

“Just because it happened with someone you knew, doesn’t mean it’ll be your choice, too.” Minnie smiles, her hand twitching with the urge to squeeze Clementine’s again. “It’s always going to be a choice.”

“You’re right,” she says. “Thank you, Minnie. Seriously. I’m not...you know...but it happens one day, I guess you’re right. It’ll be my choice.”

“I know it’s not like we’re friends or anything,” Minnie starts. “But I really feel like we are. Vi told me so much about you. And I...I’m so sorry for what I did before...so what I’m trying and failing to say is that, whatever happens, I’ll be on your side. Consider it my thank you for voting in my favor before.” Her eyes glow with mirth again before she raises a fist. “What do you say? Fist bump?”

Clementine nods and bumps her fist against Minnie’s. “Girls gotta look out for each other, after all.” She starts getting up after a moment, but changes her mind at the last second. “Thank you for helping tonight, too. Distracting me from the pain.”

“It’s nothing,” Minnie says, waving her off.

When she does get back to her room, the pain of her cramps in nothing but a shadow, the happiness she feels of having talked to Minnie far more important.

Her boys are already fast asleep, separate beds this time. She can’t help a small chuckle that leaves her lips—yes, sometimes AJ will really act like a kid his age and demand “some space” from her and Louis. She decides to leave him alone this tonight, joining Louis in the bed they’ve been sharing for years.

“You okay?” He mumbles sleepily, eyes still closed, but arms promptly wrapping around her waist. “We were waiting for you...”

She kisses his forehead. “I’m okay, I promise. Go back to sleep.”

She doesn’t need to say it twice, and soon she’s joining them in a calm sleep.

* * *

 

When Clementine opens her eyes the next morning, the first thing she realizes is that AJ isn’t in his bed anymore. Her sleepy brain comes up with Tenn’s face, and she nods to herself—her boy probably went to pester Tenn about drawing together. The second thing she noticed is that Louis, however, hasn’t left their bed yet. He’s snoring softly next to her ear, both arms wrapped around her like she’s a prized teddy bear.

She doesn’t really want to wake him up, but they need to start their day. Although, her mind pauses, there is something she wants to discuss with him. Minnie gave her enough strength to have this conversation, to believe in herself.

“Hey, sleepyhead,” she whispers, nudging Louis gently. “Time to wake up.”

“Nah, don’t wanna,” he mumbles back, squeezing her middle. “Come back at a decent time.”

“Not sure how I’ll be able to come back if you won’t stop squeezing me, though.”

He offers her a sleepy chuckle. “See, I’m always the smarter one. We can sleep a bit more.”

“Nope,” she says, not managing to hide a fond smile. “We have to help the others, you know that. Besides, I kind of want to talk about something before we see everyone else.”

This makes him open one eye. “Yeah? You’re finally going to tell me how lucky you think you are for having found your best possible match?”

She slaps him in the arm before wiggling herself free so she can dig inside her backpack. When she produces the bag of pills she got from Ruby, Louis opens both eyes and sits up, suddenly wide awake.

“Hey,” he says, his hand grabbing her free one. “Did something happen?”

She smiles, pressing the bag into his hands. “No, not really. I just...decided that I don’t want to have these anymore. I’m not going to throw them away because that would be stupid, but I want you to keep them. Someone might need them one day, but...it probably won’t be us.”

He keeps staring at her, eyes wide, mouth slightly open.

“Really, you’re speechless?” She tries, but he just shakes his head. “I’m not saying I want to try and...you know. What I’m saying is that...well, if it happens, I’m okay with it.”

It takes him a moment to put the pills away—gently, so gently—and finally pull her into a hug.

“Your silence is scaring me a little, you know?” Clementine whispers, though she still hugs him back as tightly as she possibly can. “I thought your reaction would be more...chatty.”

Louis laughs. “I actually don’t know what to say. It’s just...” he stops talking, but the huge grin on his face says everything she needs to know.

She takes his face between both of her hands and leans closer, and she has to close her eyes and enjoy the moment they’re stealing, the warmth they’re sharing. Kissing him will never get old, that’s one thing she’s certain of.

When they break for air, he’s still smiling. “You know, Clem, if that’s how you’re planning on waking me from now on, I’m pretty sure I’ll become a morning person.”

She wants to seat him again, but instead she decides on stealing another kiss. It’s always more fun when she does that anyway.

* * *

 

She feels like both of them are glowing when they make it to the courtyard and it’s like everyone can see it, too. Louis’ mood is so over the moon that he doesn’t even flinch when he accidentally greets Minnie. He doesn’t blink when she greets him back, a dumbfounded expression on her face.

It all lasts no more than an hour, when they decide to go check the traps to see if their dinner is waiting.

“Can I go?” AJ asks, grinning like this is what he considers as fun. “I promise I’ll be careful.”

“Alone? Definitely not,” Clementine answers promptly, making the boy rolls his eyes.

“I don’t have to go alone.”

Minnie clears her throat. “I could go with him, if that’s okay.”

AJ looks at her suspiciously, brows furrowed. When she notices his stare, she cringes and nods to herself.

“I mean,” Violet interrupts before they can start fighting, “if that’s okay with Clem, I don’t see why not.”

“I do,” Louis says immediately. “I’m not letting my...I’m not letting AJ go outside with someone I don’t trust.”

Judging from everyone’s dark glares, this is about to escalate. Again. So Clementine sighs and announces, “You know what, I’ll go. AJ stays this. End of the discussion.”

For some reason, they listen to her, nod a bit before everyone finds something else to do. Louis stays glued to her side, though. “I’ll go with you,” he says.

She shrugs. “Fine by me.”

They make their way through the woods in silence, barely looking at each other. Until she can’t take it anymore and says, “You should be nicer to her.”

Louis looks at her for a second. “Who?”

“You know who.” She rolls her eyes, pausing to touch his shoulder. “Minnie. She’s not a bad person, and you should know that already.”

“Are we still discussing this?”

“We shouldn’t. But apparently yes, we are.” Clementine closes her eyes for a moment. “I spoke to her last night. We...talked about many things. That decision I took this morning? She helped me. She reassured me.”

He’s the one to sign this time, looking away from her. “Listen, it’s not...I don’t hate her. I just...can’t trust her right now. Is it so hard to understand? She almost killed you. This seriously doesn’t bother you?”

“Well, she’s not the first to try,” she says with a small smile. It falls quickly. “But she is probably the first to regret it and...the first I actually tried to forgive.”

When he stays silent for too long, she turns around and hugs him tightly. “Louis,” she whispers. “Please. This is important to me.”

He returns her hug. “Okay. Okay, I’ll...try. I can’t make any promises, but I’ll try to forgive her.”

“It’s all I’m asking.”

They take the moment to keep each other close, enjoy their peace while it lasts—which, unsurprisingly, ends abruptly when they hear someone stepping on twigs nearby.

Her hand flies to her knife in less than a second, her body instinctively crouching down so she can be hidden from immediate view. Louis follows suit, his free hand clutching her arm. To comfort her or himself, she isn’t sure.

“I’m telling you, she isn’t here,” a gruff voice suddenly says, and Clementine feels her heart picking up speed in fear. She knows this voice. She’s been dreading it since the day she left him for the walkers. The man with only one arm. The one that still gives Brody nightmares.

“And _I’m_ telling you it’s not up for discussion,” someone else answers. A woman this time. “I know she was around. She wouldn’t have gone too far after she escaped. In fact, it wouldn’t surprise me if she went back to her friends at the school.”

“That would too stupid,” the man bites back. “They’d never accept her. And it’s not like she’d trust them, either.”

“Did you come here to bicker? Shut up.” The woman sighs. “Instead of complaining, you could help me. The faster we find her, the faster we’ll get out of here.”

Clementine moves slowly, trying to get a better view of the raiders. She knows the second voice as well, remembers this woman from somewhere. She just can’t picture a face, and she needs to know.

Louis mouths “what are you doing?” and she shushes him, too focused on her “mission.” She ignores most of the sounds surrounding her, focusing solely on what she can see. And then, in a second of recklessness, she’s the one to step on a rotten twig. It snaps under her weight, the sound seemingly amplified by the quiet woods. Louis’ eyes go wide, and she desperately gestures for him to hide somewhere. He shakes his head, too stunned to move.

“What was that?” The man asks, his form finally showing up from behind nearby trees. “Show yourself!”

She remains quiet, waiting to see if the woman will appear as well. When she doesn’t, Clementine knows it’s a trap. The moment she reveals herself, she’ll have a gun pointed to her head. Once again, she looks at Louis and pleads with him, begs him to go hide. He takes a deep breath and nods, gesturing for her to follow him. She tries, but her legs suddenly feel shaky when the man speaks again:

“Come on, little girl, we know ya’re hiding somewhere.” His leering makes her close her eyes tightly, both in fear and disgust. “Didn’t you enjoy our hospitality, Minerva?”

Clementine’s mind snaps to the girl, her face popping up in her mind. The bruises on her face and arms, the hardened expression in her eyes, it all makes her shudder.

Suddenly, there’s a hand in her arm, squeezing it and forcing her to move. Her mouth opens in protest, but once she sees it’s Louis, she allows him to tug her away. She can’t stop thinking about the encounter even after they enter the school, her body covered in cold sweat.

It must be showing, because AJ doesn’t hesitate to grab her and pull her into a hug.

“Are you okay, Clem?” He asks, voice small and yet ready to protect her. “Did you find monsters?”

She shakes her head, can’t really find the words yet. When her eyes meet with Minnie’s, she swallows dryly and says, “I think we need to fortify the school.”

Everyone is suddenly looking at her, speaking all at once.

“What are you talking about?”

“We’ve been trying to fortify this place for years!”

“No one even seems interested in doing more than steal from the traps!”

“Did something happen? You look pale, Clem.”

“Are you two okay?”

“Shut up! Shut up everyone, I’m trying to think!” This last voice, the loudest of them all, comes from Violet. She shares one glance with Minnie before approaching Clementine, carefully not looking at Louis and AJ, who are both standing on Clem’s sides like her personal bodyguards. “Clem, I agree that maybe our defenses aren’t…effective enough. But why are you worried? Why now?”

She takes a deep breath, squeezing her boys’ hands before turning to look at Violet.

“The raiders are getting closer to us,” she says. “We saw them in the woods. Right now. Two of them. Including…that man.” She does her best to avoid looking at Brody, to not look at her while she flinches and shivers, pushing herself even closer to Mitch’s side.

Vi just stares, waiting for her to continue. When she doesn’t, Violet says, “Okay. Okay, this is bad. But how can you be sure they weren’t just taking food from the traps?”

“They were…” Clementine sighs. “…looking for someone. They were talking about it. And they thought maybe the person they were looking for could’ve come here.”

“Did they say who?” Minnie suddenly asks, her face paling all over.

Clementine can’t find it in herself to answer, but Louis does it for her, “You, Minerva. They were looking for you.”

Marlon clears his throat, opens his mouth, but before he can utter a word, Violet is already growling.

“If you say something like ‘just give her to them,’ I swear to God—”

He interrupts her, hands raised high. “I wasn’t! I was just…just going to say I agree with Clem, and that we should do something to make sure this place is really secure.”

Violet shuts her mouth, but her eyes are still hard.

Finally, it’s Louis who blurts, after squeezing her waist one more time, “What are we waiting for, then? Let’s do something!”

 

* * *

 

It takes four more weeks until the raiders finally arrive, ready to take everyone with them. The one-armed man, the one that scares all of them, comes as well. He’s the one announcing that they’re going to take everyone with them, that it’s not just about Minerva anymore.

He looks at both Brody and Clementine the whole time, his leering causing both girls to gag and fight as hard as they can.

They aren’t expecting so many people to be at the school, though. They aren’t expecting their traps. They aren’t expecting how much everyone trusts each other, protects each other.

They aren’t expecting the moment the man shoots at Clementine. And, most importantly, they aren’t expecting for Minerva to jump in front of the other girl with an angry growl. It doesn’t do much besides graze her shoulders, but it’s enough leverage for Mitch to take the man down with one of his explosives.

It doesn’t take long until all raiders are running away, overwhelmed by the school and the walkers that were attracted with their noise.

That night, Clementine is sure of one thing: there’s enough trust in this community to keep it running for years.

 

* * *

 

Louis goes back to talking to Minnie the next day.

“Thank you,” he says, awkwardly and shuffling his feet. “For saving her. You...she’s my whole world, Minnie. Thank you. And I’m...I’m sorry I wasn’t fair to you before. Can we start over?”

Minnie playfully punches him in the arm. “It’s all good. _If_ you let me play the piano today.”

Clementine laughs at them, how they slowly patch up the pieces of friendships that could still be fixed.

“Bold of you to believe I’d let anyone near my baby,” Louis says, a huge grin on his face. He winks at Clementine one more time before walking away with Minnie, laughing loudly at something she’s telling him. It makes Clementine’s heart double in size, especially when AJ runs to them and wraps his arms around Louis’. Suddenly Tenn is also there, running to keep up with his sister and his friends.

Clementine smiles one more time, turning around so she can help Violet with watch.

* * *

 

They aren’t perfect, but their little community is a home.

Their home. 

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> I'm not sure I love my writing, because I feel like sometimes I stray too much into telling instead of showing, but gah whatever. I hope someone enjoyed this anyway! :)

**Author's Note:**

> Oh, if you want to chat about TWD or games in general, I’m teenagezombiegentlemen on tumblr! ;)


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